After decades of steady improvement, the labor force participation rate of American women peaked in 2000 and has declined since. As of September 2017, 25–54 year old women's labor force participation rate was 75.2 percent (compared to 88.6 percent for men), below its 2000 peak of 77.3 percent.
This changing trend is a central economic concern. Since 1970, most of the increase in the typical household's income has been due to women's increasing labor market participation. By one calculation, GDP in 2013 was $2 trillion – or roughly 14 percent – higher because of the increase in women's participation and hours above 1970 levels. By the same token, now that women's participation is trending downwards, an important tailwind for families' living standards has been removed.
Read Full Article »